Statement by Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, Outreach Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 8627688, SNAPdorris@gmail.com)

An Illinois pastor is on leave during an investigation into his conduct. We are glad he has stepped aside and hope that the investigation is thorough and any relevant findings are turned over to secular authorities.

In a statement from Rockford’s bishop David Malloy, the allegation against Fr. Aaron Brodeski’s conduct supposedly has nothing to do with a minor or Holy Cross church in Batavia, where Brodeski was the pastor.

We hope this is true. We hope that anyone who saw, suspects or suffered misconduct by Brodeski or any other church staff will come forward and call secular authorities.

(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We’ve been around for 25 years and have more than 15,000 members. Despite the word “priest” in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)